Blue is Better
by SkinOfInk
Summary: Azula wakes up in the Asylum Zuko has so kindly put her in, but she is far from satisfied, or settled. Breaking out is the first thing on her mind, but what will happen when her search for revenge leads to the loss of the thing she loves most?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

Azula stood beside her father on the leading airship, a large metal craft soaring high above the water. She could see the green blur of the Earth Kingdom even from this great distance, and felt a rush of excitement at the end of the long journey. Her plan too brought more adrenaline into her system, and she quickly tried to smooth out the flow of her chi. Harnessing the power of the comet that rose higher in the sky than they were would take focus.

The green blur shaped itself into a coastline, and Azula could already visualize her plan taking shape on the frothy tops of the many trees and plants. All that life, bathed in fire set her heart thumping again. She glanced at her father, Fire Lord Ozai, or rather The Phoenix King, and felt herself swell with pride. He was here because of her, he believed in her plan to bring the Earth Kingdom to its knees. He believed in _her_, and when they were done, and all was ash, he would crown her Fire Lord. She tried to imagine what it would feel like to have the headpiece set atop her head, and she shivered.

The Earth Kingdom seemed to grow closer now, and Azula readied herself, sliding into a fighting position. She could feel her chi surging, the sparks of flames rippling out of her perfectly formed fists, the flames pouring down on the land of the Earth Kingdom and the stubborn fools they called citizens.

The unique blue color of her fire twisted next to her father's traditional orange. Azula laughed out loud, one of the few times she had felt actual, overwhelming joy. But something was wrong. Her father's flame was now being extinguished.

"Azula." He said. She turned.

"What is it father?" She tried to keep her tone under control. This was not supposed to happen! This was not according to plan! Something in his face made her frightened, and she hated it.

"Step aside." He was completely calm as he spoke, and this made Azula believe that he was serious.

"I-I don't understand! What are you talking about!?" None of this was supposed to happen, none of it!

"I_ said._ Step. Aside." His face was cold and calculating. But Azula's wasn't. She glanced behind her at the void that extended from the small metal platform she stood so precariously on. For the first time it scared her.

"There's nowhere to go!" She screamed in frustration, not knowing what was happening.

"Yes, there is." The Fire Lord smiled.

"Where!" She yelled. What did he want from her? What did _anyone_ want from her?

"Down." She didn't see it coming, but felt the arm shove her from behind. She fell. Suddenly she wasn't confused, she was furious. She turned in the air to face her attacker; she would not go down alone, but the fire died from her hands in shock as she laid her amber eyes on the matching ones above. It was Zuko.

Suddenly, Azula felt herself being plunged into water; a cold feeling enclosed her, the fire in her choked along with her breath. It was her worst nightmare. Or one of them at least.

All was blue to her eyes as a booming, yet familiar voice rattled inside her very brain.

"You failed." Zuko said.

And she was screaming, fire pouring out of her mouth, her eyes flying open in horror. She felt metal restraints, harnesses encasing her body. Many hands pushed her down onto a hard metal surface. She felt the flames die out as her strength failed her, and she searched for a target to blame. A kindly old woman's face appeared in front of her blocking off most of an unseen, but very bright light source.

"It's okay dearie." She said, stroking Azula's sweaty forehead. "You just had a bad dream, you're safe now." Azula frowned, and tried to speak with difficulty through what seemed to be a metal muzzle over her mouth.

"Step aside!" She cried. "Step aside!" Her hands yanked against their bonds, and fire flared again, but was only silenced by the metal gloves she saw now enclosing her entire body. Escape seemed impossible. The woman above, however, seemed to think otherwise, as she had rushed behind two simpleton guards who were now facing her, fists raised to her face.

Azula smiled, already seeing numerous flaws in their forms. Had she been free…Well there were more important things to find out.

"Alright, I'm sorry I scared you." She let sarcasm drip from her voice. "I'll be a good little girl for grandma, now just TELL ME WHERE I AM!" She would let herself enjoy this. Just a little bit.

The guards closed in again, but the old woman caught her breath and waved them off. "It's alright, it's alright!" She said. "The girl is restrained." The woman once again took up a posture of sappy understanding. "I'm sorry dear, but these are necessary precautions. You see, you are in Zhao's Asylum and house of healing!" Azula frowned. That didn't sound right. Then again, what was she doing all tied up? Her memory seemed hazy… "Who are you?" Azula finally asked. The woman relaxed.

"I'm a nurse here, and you have no need to be afraid! We'll make sure you get the best treatment, courtesy of Fire Lord Zuko!"

Azula screamed.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

A/N: _Hey, you amazing people who actually read my story! To be honest, I've never done anything like this before, hence the lack of an author's note on the first chapter, and I could really use some reviews to gauge your reaction. I want to be an actual writer someday, so any constructive criticism is great! Hope you like the story!_

* * *

"So, your brother…were you close?"

"You could say that."

"Did you always know he would become Fire Lord?" Azula glowered at the man sitting across from her, earning her several sloppy marks on a piece of paper in his lap. She wanted to burn that paper. She had tried. Of course, no therapy session is complete without a group of highly skilled chi-blocking Kyoshi warriors surrounding you, just waiting for their last rounds to wear off. Azula had respected them as opponents worthy of sparring a few rounds with, now she just wanted to watch them fall.

"Azula? Princess Azula?"

"Don't call me that!" She shrieked, then blushed at her own outburst. The "therapist" sighed.

"Azula then." He rubbed his face in preparation, and looked nervously at the green-garbed girls forming a circle around Him and Azula. "You still haven't answered my question."

"I would probably think better if my head wasn't bound to the chair, and it's so _very_ hard to talk through this…what do you call this? A muzzle? Yes that's it." She sat back as much as she could. Her entire body was encased in some form of binding. Most of them metal. The doctors had learned their lesson after she was first chi-blocked. They thought it was safe to leave her head and feet unbound. Amusing for her, not so much for the two victims now sitting at home with broken bones. Even without her bending she was still dangerous, and for that small second when her limbs began to feel again, she had put them to use. The therapist started rubbing his temples again.

"Really, we're getting nowhere. You know just as well as I do what happened last time, now could you just answer the question?"

"Getting touchy are we? Fine. No I didn't believe he would become Fire Lord. I'm better than him, it should be me. It _should_ be me!" She grew angry at the thought of her brother now. He wore her crown. He sat on her throne and called it his own. "I'm the best. At everything. Even as a child I could beat him, though he'd had more training. I knew father would give me the title, or I would pry it from Zu-Zu's hands in an Agni Kai. Happy now? Enough feeling for you now?" She had rambled, she knew it. And she didn't care.

"Yes." The therapist said, smiling without humor.

"I'm pleased by that sentiment. I trust I'm allowed to leave now?"

"Sure." The therapist said. "You won't be having another session with me, by the way."

Azula smiled. "And why would that be?"

"I have been…reassigned." He rose quickly.

"Leaving so soon?" She smiled. The Kyoshi warriors closed the entryway off as the therapist left with his notes. She could see them glaring quietly at her through their makeup.

"We will escort you to your chambers now." One of the girls said, releasing her legs from their straps. She had a long brown braid running down her back. Just like Ty Lee. Azula clenched her fists.

"If you must." She said, trying to maintain composure. The warriors jabbed her shoulders and hips with a series of quick jabs, and she could feel again, but her bending wasn't back yet. She sighed. No matter, it would be back soon, and she could work on her revenge…or rather breakout when she safely back in her cell.

The Ty Lee look alike led her to her chambers, and locked the door behind her, staying in the room. Azula sat down on the one wooden chair in the room, and waited for the girl to undo her bonds. Or some of them at least. She let another of the warriors inside, which wasn't unusual. This one had a somewhat familiar look in her wide eyes, and she seemed nervous, altogether _too_ nervous. She knew that face.

"What are you doing here Ty lee?" Azula fought to keep her voice under control. Curse emotions.

"How…how did you know it was me? With the makeup and…" She trailed off. "Oh who am I kidding? You're Azula." It was a sufficient explanation.

"That's right, I'm Azula. Now get out."

"But-"

"But WHAT?!" Azula tried to stand up, but found the other Kyoshi warrior in the room was now jabbing her again, and she fell to the floor, looking up into Ty Lee's wide, oh so innocent eyes. She sighed. "I didn't know you were a Kyoshi warrior, I suppose the uniform suited you so much the first time, you never wanted to take it off? Or perhaps you just missed being a part of the crowd again, disappearing into a bunch of girls who look just like you." She wanted to hurt Ty Lee. Wanted to betray her, but it was too late for that.

"Azula I…I came to talk to you."

"What about? Or do you just like me on the ground? Perhaps you think I prefer it here, looking up at you, unable to move." Ty Lee's eyes filled with tears, she was always an easy crier. Far easier to read than Mai, or so she'd thought.

"No!" She stepped back, almost shocked at her own outburst. "I want you to know…I really thought you were my friend, sometimes you were my only friend, when Mai was mopey or out with Zuko." She waited for Azula to respond, and got one blink of the eyes.

"I really looked up to you, but sometimes, you were so _mean_, and I didn't want you to hurt Mai, I just… What are you smiling at?" She stepped back even further.

"Oh, just that if you think this is a good way to apologize, the words _I'm sorry_ are necessary things to say in order to obtain forgiveness. But I wouldn't even spare you that." Ty Lee put her hand on the doorknob.

"I thought you might have changed Azula…but clearly, you haven't. Come on Ryoko. Suki will be waiting for us." And with that, she left, and Azula was alone again.

"They didn't even undo my bonds." She said aloud, but the two girls didn't come back.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: _Hello again! This chapter was very hard to write, but I needed Azula to feel some form of closure, and for that, I needed her to have a heart to heart. So tell me what you think. Reviews are always appreciated. Enjoy!_

* * *

Chapter 3:

Azula spent her days much the same. She would eat, she would sleep, she would relieve herself, and she would talk to the therapists. They gave her advice, albeit grudgingly, and a number of herbal teas and remedies. None of them seemed to like her much.

As she showed more and more admirable behavior, the guards let her have a few key bindings dropped, and soon she was allowed to keep her head out of the brace all the time. Her feet were still bound when she was around others, however, which was just as well. Azula would have wondered about her captor's sanity if they let her have_ that_ much freedom.

Ty Lee never showed her face in the Asylum again, another thing Azula expected the doctors to do. Sometimes Suki would come with the rotation of her guards, but she was one of the only two Kyoshi warriors Azula bothered to remember. The others were just faceless blurs.

Each day Azula thought out her plan to escape, and each day she grew more and more anxious, but she was patient. She knew that one wrong move would send her back to square one, and that would be no help at all. Besides, sometimes she still felt like she was actually crazy, and that wasn't something she wanted to feel facing down countless trained guards. For all she knew, they had the Avatar close at hand, and even _she_ couldn't take him down along with all the others.

Sometimes she had dreams. They made her cry, which made her feel weak. None of the guards stationed outside her door would take any notice of her however, no matter how loud she screamed. Perhaps Azula was grateful for this, she didn't know. All she knew was that she saw her mother, the person she wanted to see the least of. Sometimes Ursa was accompanied by Zuko. Sometimes her father faced her alone, and told her she was a failure, which reminded her of the first dream she'd had in this wretched place.

There were visiting hours on the first Thursday of each month. That was how Azula marked the time, the date. No one came to see her the first time, but the second time, Zuko came.

The guards, the doctors, everyone was very nervous about the oh-so-wonderful Fire Lord coming to visit their humble asylum. Azula didn't feel much of anything as of late. The doctors were trying out a number of experimental medications on her to try and keep her sedated. Her therapists were very thankful, but the remedies had…certain side effects.

Azula always felt relaxed after taking them, a feeling somewhat foreign to her. It was nice though. For once she didn't have to feel the cold tightness of her bonds, or Zuko and her mother Ursa in her head, yelling at her. She could just tune it all out. Even escape slipped from her mind. She wasn't even nervous when they wheeled her in to meet Zuko, in a cold, metal cell placed far away from any of the other prisoners, or patients rather.

"Zu-Zu!" She yelled when she was finally seated in the chair across from him. His was padded and trimmed in gold and red. Hers was not.

"Azula." He said.

"You look tired Zu-Zu, working hard? I bet a post-war Fire Nation is just as hard to deal with as a Fire Nation during the war! But really, what's the difference? They're both fighting against you!" She started laughing, even though part of her knew it wasn't a very good joke. Zuko said nothing for a while. The guards around him eyed the Kyoshi warriors lining the walls of the cell.

"How are you doing?" He finally spoke.

"Oh, you know, the usual." She let her head roll around a bit; it was nice not to have to sit up straight all the time. "How's mother, how's father? Do they miss me?"

"Yes."

"DON'T LIE!" She yelled, suddenly angry. Maybe the drugs were wearing off. "You were never a good liar."

"Did you take anything recently?" His eyes were very serious. He was always serious.

"They gave me some tea…don't think I don't know what was in it. I'm not a fool." She sighed; he was no fun to talk to. They sat in silence. HE seemed to be thinking something over.

"Azula…" He said after a while. "Do you want to know why I put you here instead of the boiling rock?"

"I have a feeling I already know the answer." She replied. What was his point?

"It's because your mind is broken." He sat back, then looked at her again as if expecting something. "Do you want to tell me why?"

"You sound like my therapist."

"Just your best guess."

"You're not my therapist, I would dislike you more."

"You don't hate me?" He seemed to sit up straighter, as if surprised.

"NO brother dearest!" She laughed. "I lost my throne. It was me who was weak." She trailed off into muttering, not wanting him to hear her next words.

"What was that Azula?"

"Oh, nothing. Just that father must have expected this from me. He left me at home you know, deserted me."

"I didn't know that."

"You're genuinely surprised by that aren't you?" She started laughing uncontrollably again, as if she couldn't stop. "It's funny you know, that we each wanted what the other had."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh it's obvious isn't it? You wanted father's approval, and I wanted mother's love. We both knew father didn't have any of _that_."

"You were jealous of me?"

"_Really_, don't act so surprised all the time! I always knew mother hated me, I told you so didn't I?"

"So…what you're saying is…" He sighed, then grinned. "You were actually jealous of me!"

"No need to rub things in Zu-Zu." She said, her voice cold. "You're Fire Lord now, you have it all, and here I am in a strait jacket, is there any more proof needed? Or can they take me back to my room now?" She jerked her head towards the Kyoshi Warriors.

"Azula…there's one thing I'm curious about."

"There's no one stopping you."

"Did you really think father had abandoned you?"

"What other answer is there? I had failed him. Somehow. He wouldn't take me with him. It was all just a game to him, the entire world. He was Phoenix King, he didn't need me, didn't want me. WHY DIDN'T HE TAKE ME?" She started to cry. "I always lose, why can't I _keep_ anything?!"

"Azula." He said softly. She lashed out, and he jumped back. The Kyoshi warriors advanced, but he stood up, blocking his sister from their view. "Leave please." They looked pointedly over at the crying girl in the chair, now struggling to stand up. Zuko sighed. "I can handle this, I just…need her alone."

As the guards filed out, Azula quieted down, tears still running down her face.

"I suppose I can't blame this on the tea, can I?" She said. Zuko sat back down. "And I suppose you think you can handle me now? Because you beat me the last time?"

"You're off your game Azula."

"Well what's the point anymore? What's the point of this conversation? Why did you come here, really?"

"You're my sister."

"I was never really your sister, just your enemy, your rival. I was better, but everyone liked you. Why is that? Why can't I ever hold anything for my own? It's always so easy for you."

"It's not that easy." He said quietly.

"Yes? Then why did Mai choose you? Why did Ty Lee betray me? Why did father leave me behind?! Why did…Why did mother…" She started to cry again, but quietly this time.

"Because father molded you, and as you said, he didn't care about love, just his war. He taught you that love was weakness, but you wanted it anyway, he taught you that fear was power, but it failed you. Don't you see? Everything he ever told you was a lie!"

"Then what_ does_ work?" She looked up at him abruptly.

"Letting go." He said, standing up. "Don't fight yourself Azula. If you do you've already lost." He paused at the door. "I think I must have heard that from Uncle. It's very profound" He turned the knob to let the guards in.

"Wait!" Azula yelled before he could move. "One last thing." She steeled herself. "Why wouldn't mother talk to me? Why would she leave me to father, why wouldn't she love me?"

"I don't know Azula." He said. "You'll have to tell her that yourself." With that, he left. The Kyoshi warriors flooded in, making sure all her straps were tight, the metal grate over her mouth was secure. They jabbed her again so she could feel her legs, and placed her into a wheelchair. How humiliating. At least she didn't see Zuko in the hall.

* * *

In her cell that night, lying on the bed, Azula thought over everything her brother had said. According to him, she had things all wrong, but how could that have happened? What was she then, if everything she had been taught was a lie? Father had never loved her, of that she was sure. But mother…mother… She couldn't bring herself to think the words. Every time she pictured Ursa's face, she was next to Zuko. Every time she thought about her, it would always be in the same context. What would have happened if Grandpa had asked Ozai to kill _her_? Would mother have stopped him? Would either of them have lifted a finger?

She shut her eyes to keep the tears from escaping, muffled her face in the mattress to keep her screams inside.

NO. She thought. She couldn't keep this up, couldn't run around in circles, locked up in this hellhole of a life. One thing was for certain, she needed to get out, then she could release her anger out onto the people who had ruined her life, fragile as it had been.

"The avatar will pay." She said quietly. Spoken words felt more powerful now, much more powerful than her fevered mind. "They will all pay, even father and Zuko." She took a deep breath. "And mother, I'll save her for last."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: _Hey, hope you guys weren't waiting for the update for too long, life happened. This chapter has a slow lead up to the climax, so just hang in and keep reading. Reviews, of course, are amazing, and really help me with my writing. (I can't fix the problems if I don't know what they are) Anyways, enjoy._

* * *

Azula had been in the Asylum for three months now. Two months of torture, one month of planning. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in." Azula said, even though the Kyoshi warriors and the nurse no doubt accompanying them would have entered anyway. It gave her the illusion of control, something she liked very much.

"Someone's coming to visit you today Azula, won't that be nice?" The nurse smiled kindly at her. Azula narrowed her eyes. They were putting the muzzle on her again, and chi-blocking her so she couldn't move. Suki put a hand on the nurse's shoulder.

"Don't talk to her, it's just more trouble than it's worth." The girl said. Azula smiled. A thousand insults rose in her mind, but she fought each one back reluctantly. Now was not the time. If there was one thing she had learned from her time in the asylum, it was to lock everything up inside until she was alone, and then to only face a certain corner of the room. You never know who could be watching.

"So, who comes to visit the ex-Fire Nation Princess today? I do so _love_ it when I get visitors." They were in the hallway now, a cold metal place, no different from every room she had been in since she had arrived.

"Your brother again." The nurse replied. She seemed colder already. Time to warm her up.

"Do you think one of you could give me some lipstick?" She asked, nodding to Suki. "It's been so long since I looked my best, and I want to make a better impression on Zu-Zu." She smiled charmingly at all the Kyoshi warriors. They looked back at her warily, but after a minute of waiting, Suki stopped the procession.

"Fine." She gestured to two other warriors. "Make sure she can't bend or move, just in case." They did as told, and the girl took out a pot of bright red paint from a pouch tucked in her belt. Azula smiled as they took the muzzle off.

Suki bent down and applied the stuff, messier than Azula would have liked, but better than nothing. The question had served its purpose.

"Thank you," She said graciously, her now painted mouth curling upwards.

"Don't mention it." Suki grumbled as she replaced the muzzle, and proceeded with Azula towards the meeting room. It was the same one as before.

"The princess is here." Suki said as she knocked on the door.

"Come in." A voice, obviously Zuko's, called from inside. Azula tensed at the sign of respect they showed him by waiting. Jealousy was always one of the harder emotions to control.

"Azula." The Fire Lord stood up as they entered. The Kyoshi warriors wheeled her into place, and spread out in all directions, lining the room. Zuko sat down awkwardly.

"Checking up on me again Zu-Zu?"

"Something like that." He sighed heavily. "How are things?"

"Oh, you know, take the drugs, talk to the therapists. Your visits are getting to be the most exciting things in my schedule. And that's saying something." She smiled. "Enough about me. You look even worse for wear than the last time I saw you."

"Things have been…well complicated."

"I expected as much."

"How could you? You don't know what I'm going through!" Zuko was obviously touchy on the subject.

"Calm down. The Avatar just took out our father and replaced him with you, a peace loving pacifist-"

"I wouldn't call myself a-"

"Ahem, still speaking. Anyways, that drastic a change is bound to leave some wanting to rebel, some wanting to support you…and then there are the colonies."

"The colonies!" Zuko groaned.

"I see we've found the root of the problem."

"Don't joke; the whole thing's been plaguing me for months!" He put his head in his hands and sighed, careful not to touch the blistered scar on his eye. "They're on Earth Kingdom territory, so the logical choice is to bring all the Fire Nation citizens home, but some people have families! I can't rip people apart, nor can I leave them there, that'll just start another war…"

"Do you know what I would do?"

"Azula, I don't need a way to turn my citizens into corpses." She laughed hysterically at his statement, letting it go on longer than it should. Zuko shifted uncomfortably.

"Do you really think so little of me? We were both born to rule, and somehow father seemed to spend more time with me after you were banished." She said.

"Fine, let's hear your idea."

"Of course." Azula smiled. "Why don't you just declare the colonies a separate nation?" The smile slid off her face as she considered her idea. "Then again...you would lose the income from the colonies, and citizens who could become viable soldiers…forget what I said. War is the best option."

"Azula…you're the same as ever."

"Why would I be any different?"

* * *

"How was your visit?" The nurse brewing her tea asked. Azula didn't respond, but merely smiled. Small talk was unnecessary. The nurse said nothing else as she left the drink for the Kyoshi warrior to administer, locking the door behind her. Azula frowned.

The girl in Kyoshi's green robes slowly removed the muzzle from over her mouth, and brought the tea to Azula's lips, which most likely contained a sedative. Suddenly, Azula's eyes flitted to the door over the Kyoshi warrior's shoulder. The girl turned her head, but there was nothing there. She turned back, and Azula was wiping her lips sloppily on the edge of her straitjacket.

"Oh, my lipstick." She said, pouting. "Could you possibly fix it?" She tried to look helpless with mixed results. The girl reached into one of the pouches tucked into the folds of her belt, and brought the color out.

"Oh! I _just_ thought of something!" Azula cried, her face lighting up. "You should make me up like one of you! You know, a Kyoshi warrior?" Azula smiled widely.

"Um…I don't know, the tea will take affect soon… I have guard duty-"

"Over me." Azula cut in. "What better way to keep watch than inside the cell?" The girl considered it, and seemed to decide that nothing bad could happen. Azula waited with closed eyes as she felt the red paint on her lips and under her eyebrows, the white base, the black liner. It was all so familiar she couldn't help but think of the two people who had gone undercover in Ba Sing Se with her. Her fingers clenched in their position behind her back, and suddenly she could feel heat warming the palms. Her bending was back, after two long hours of talking with Zu-Zu, stalling for as long as possible, it was back. She felt the metal around her wrists soften, her hands working slowly to free themselves.

"It's done, you can open your eyes now." The girl said. Azula smiled, and did so.

"How do I look?" She asked, letting her head sag back a bit to give the illusion of fatigue. "Oooh, can you get me a _mirror_?" The warrior looked unsure again, so Azula yawned for good measure.

"Fine," she said, and unlocked the door with a key in a hidden side pocket. The girl locked it behind her, and told the Kyoshi warriors outside what Azula wanted.

"You're really getting what she wants?" Asked Ryoko.

"The tea's starting to take effect, she'll be out by the time I get back." The girl left, remembering the hand mirror in her bag.

When she came back, the guards had changed; she had missed her shift, much to the annoyance of her comrades. She carefully opened the door, and walked inside. Azula was asleep, her head lolling on the chair. She breathed a sigh of relief, not really sure what she was expecting, and turned around to lock the door again so she could lie Azula on her bed, make sure her bindings were secure.

The attack came from behind. She felt a leather strap pressed against her neck, a knee in her back forcing her windpipe into the material, cutting off her circulation. She couldn't breathe, couldn't scream for help. More importantly, she couldn't tell the guards outside that the ex-Fire Nation princess had broken free.

* * *

Azula stared at the girl's dead body without mercy. She stood in all her untamed glory, dressed in a musty nightgown. She hadn't known what was underneath all the metal, the straps, the straitjackets. Every time they had changed her clothes she had been sedated. There was a large wet stain down the front where Azula had spilled the tea she was supposed to drink.

"Ugh." She muttered, but no time for that now. The other warriors outside would soon notice their friend had not returned. Quickly she stripped the girl, and pulled on her robes, and all the armor and weapons she had on her, very useful. It was interesting being in the uniform again, to say the least. Interesting. Lastly, she considered her hair. Her sheared bangs had grown back considerably well over the past three months, and were now brushing her shoulders. The style might be too recognizable though. Besides, the girl now lying dead on the floor had short hair. It would have to go.

Azula reached to her belt and produced a knife. She slashed her hair off so that it formed a bob, brushing the sides of her neck. She tied the headdress at the back of her head, and arranged the girl on her bed, pulling the blankets over her head, and kicking the mangled shackles, jackets and straps that had once held her into the corner. It might buy her some time in the long run if people could believe, if only for a few seconds, that she was still a prisoner.

She breathed deeply to calm herself, and walked out the door, nodding to the warriors on either side of it, and proceeded to lock it with the keys she had.

"She out?" One of the warriors asked her.

"Like the dead." Azula said in a rough approximation of the other warrior's voice. The girl frowned, but didn't say anything, and Azula carefully walked down the hall towards a door at the end. She wasn't free yet.

She wandered around the asylum, trying to get a feel for her legs again after not using them for so many months. The guards who patrolled the corridors with less high-security-risk patients didn't ask any questions when she passed, and Azula was able to see what the normal part of the asylum was like. The halls were still metal, but the other patients seemed to be allowed some freedoms she was not. Then again, some of them were unable to speak a word besides "no," and others merely stared off into space while their caretakers wheeled them around the hallways.

Azula eventually made it to a back door, guarded by one male guard dressed in full armor. Her hands clenched in anticipation as she considered her options.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" The guard approached her cautiously, not aware of who she was.

"Well, to be honest…" Azula drawled, not bothering to disguise her voice. "I'm feeling a little…_off_ today. If you could just let me through…" She made to pass him, and found he was trying to block her. He slid into a fighting stance. Azula smiled. Sloppy.

"What are you doing here?" He repeated.

"I'm here to improve your form. Follow my example!" Her foot whirled around, bringing with it a trail of blue flame. The guard gasped as he staggered back.

"The-!" He started to shout, but broke off as Azula began to move her arms in a slow circle. He backed up against the wall, staring in horror as the cold blue sparks trailing her fingers turned suddenly and hit him full in the chest. He died in seconds with barely a yell.

Azula heard footsteps running down the hall at the guard's cries, and quickly made her way out the door, welding it shut with a focused beam of flame. They pounded against the door, yelling for backup and her surrender.

"Really Azula." She muttered to herself. "Letting the guards know your presence? Father would say you were rusty." With that, she started to run towards the stables full of komodo rhinos for the guards, well not the guard's anymore. Now one of them would be hers.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: _Hey, so far this has been the longest hiatus, but this is also the longest chapter so far. I hope you guys like it, and read it all the way through. My biggest fear is that you'll lose interest halfway, but just keep reading. As always, enjoy._

* * *

Azula's first instinct was to get out, and now she had no idea where she was. After stealing an animal suitable enough to ride, she had distanced herself as far from the asylum as possible in one day. The animal, a komodo rhino, had stormed off once she had dismounted, taking with it any hope of her traveling at speeds greater than walking. She was now in the middle of a field of rolling grass, tall enough to brush her waist. She hadn't smeared the makeup off her face in the hopes that she might make it to a town in the foreseeable future.

This was probably the Earth Kingdom, judging from the amount of greenery, but one could never be sure. She could just be in one of the more agricultural regions of the Fire Nation, only time would tell. For now, she walked. It was getting dark out, but she still trudged onward, trying to find some place to lie down for the night, and anywhere other than a bed was out of the question.

Finally, on the cusp of the horizon, she thought she glimpsed a smear of brown amid the boring sea of green. It was a town. Azula, of course, did not break into a run at the sight, but continued to walk at a steady pace. Being hot and sweaty and out of breath would be no help to her. It would probably be a hindrance.

She was indeed in the Earth Kingdom. The green garb and lack of good food was enough to make her one hundred percent positive of the fact. It was a small town, very small, basically a center dirt road and a collection of tumble-down shacks alongside of it. Tiny alleys and paths crisscrossed between the buildings, and a few market stalls sold their wares on the street. People's eyes lingered on her longer than they should, but she supposed that was just from the Kyoshi warrior garb. A tiny town like this probably hadn't ever seen the famed fighters. Although they might have heard of them.

Azula tried to find herself a suitable inn to sleep in, but the town was so small it didn't even have one of those.

"Sorry miss, but I can't help you!" One of the villagers said when she stopped him by the front of his dirty shirt. "But…you're welcome to stay in Shuma's house! She always lets travelers in for the night." Azula let her face slip, and showed surprise for a minute.

"This woman would voluntarily let a stranger into her house? One who might secretly be a thief, a murderer, or worse? What if said traveler were to crawl out of bed in the night, and set fire to the town while making away with all the valuables?" She trailed off to see the man staring at her in a strange way, as if she were talking to spirits. She let her grip on his front slip, releasing him, and watched the man scamper off. The others in the street gave her dirty looks, but she restrained the urge to blast them into submission. It would not do well to alert the Fire Nation or her former guards to her presence here.

A few frightened children in the street told her the way to this "Shuma" who apparently let travelers into her home. A foolish undertaking, but a convenient one nonetheless. Azula found the house on the very edge of town next a small creek that probably provided good fish in the deeper regions. The house itself was modest, and made entirely of wood and plaster.

Azula marched up the feeble path to the door and stood in front of it hesitantly. It was as if there were several sides of her telling her what to do. She wanted to knock, wait for someone to open the door on their own, and smash the thing open all at the same time. As it was, the door opened by itself, and revealed a stout woman with grey hair and calloused hands.

"Hello dear, sorry if I startled you." The woman smiled apologetically at Azula's surprised face. "I heard someone coming up the walkway, assumed it was a visitor." She smiled again. "I'm Shuma, can I help you?" Azula gathered herself from her shock.

"Yes. I require a place to stay as your…_town_ seems to have no such venue. The villagers seem to think I should come to you so…here I am." She folded her arms and waited to be turned away. No one was that trusting.

"I'd be happy to! We get so few travelers here." Shuma waved Azula inside the doorway. The girl ducked her head under the low threshold. "What's your name?" The woman smiled nervously.

"I…" Azula found herself faltering in a lie for the first time in years. "Li." She settled on the most common name in the Fire Nation, both for boys and girls, before remembering she was in the Earth Kingdom.

"Are you a Kyoshi Warrior Li?" Shuma seemed unperturbed as she set about making tea in her small main room.

"Yes." Azula replied, becoming more immersed in the lie. "I just got on leave though, passing through to get back to my family." She remembered something that Zuko had said. "They're in the colonies. We're kind of worried the Fire Nation will call my father back to the homeland, so I've been called back."

"That's certainly worrying dear." Shuma poured out the tea into chipped cups, and handed one to Azula. "The water was just starting to boil as you came in. It was perfect timing." She smiled again. Azula received the cup hurriedly, took a sip, and spat it back out.

"This is possibly the worst tea I've ever tasted." Azula said unflinchingly. Shuma's face fell.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't even ask you if you wanted some…you know my Jin always said I was bad at tea, guess I haven't gotten any better since then." The woman whisked the cup away, blushing. "Jin's my daughter by the way; she was an earthbender too, made me very proud, especially when her father died in the war… I'm sorry, I must be depressing you." She turned around, but Azula said nothing.

"Would you like me to show you to your room?" Azula nodded wordlessly, as if processing something. Shuma led the girl down a narrow hallway lined with paintings and portraits, and into a small guest bedroom with a cot not unlike the one Azula had slept on in the asylum. Shuma lingered in the doorway.

"I'll be in the room across the hall if you need me during the night." She said nervously. "Is there anything else I can get you?"

"Actually, yes." Azula spoke up. "I need some ink, a brush, and a roll of paper. A desk would be nice as well, but I suppose it might be too much to ask… that is all." She closed the door unceremoniously on the old woman, and set about pacing in the small space. She heard Shuma leave.

The last vestiges of the drugs were now leaving her body, and she felt very…unhinged. Her hands tightened as she paced, her mind racing. All the while she felt her revenge slipping away as if it were a tangible thing. Suddenly, she wasn't patient at all, suddenly she felt like punching a hole in the wall. She saw Zuko's face in the cracks in the plaster, Mai's in the sheets on the cot, Ty Lee's in the grain of the wooden floor. She gripped her head in her hands and felt tears on her face as she sank to the ground.

This was so much different from the asylum, everything crashing on her at once. There she'd had the chains to release her anger on; here she had only her common sense, which seemed to be in short supply. She needed to be invisible to get what she wanted; she needed to organize her thoughts. Her breath came in short gasps now as she calmed herself down. Her goal sustained her, made her sane.

"No one's there." She whispered to herself, over and over. She felt a hand on her shoulder, a motherly, gentle touch. She spun around and shot to her feet, tears still on her face as she made Shuma stumble backwards, several rolls of paper tumbling to the floor.

"I didn't know how much you needed…so sorry." She hurriedly set up a small writing desk on the floor, and placed the paper, ink, and brushes neatly around it. She stood up, but again seemed reluctant to leave. "This was Jin's old room…" She trailed off, her eyes somber. "So sorry." She muttered again, and turned away. Azula stopped her with a rough grip.

"Do you love your daughter?" She didn't know what was coming over her. Shuma's face creased.

"Of course dear." She sounded offended. "She was my own flesh and blood."

"Was?" Azula let the old woman go, and collapsed on the cot as if weakened. Shuma didn't leave, however.

"Yes, was." She sighed. "She died in the war a few years after being recruited. Her platoon got caught in an ambush after being refused room in a town they passed through." Azula looked over and found that Shuma had tears in her eyes.

"Get out." She said forcefully, her voice barely controlled. Shuma left in a hurry, glancing at Azula with worried and confused looks.

Azula felt tears, warm and salty on her face, running into her open mouth. She felt that she was sobbing openly, with huge racking screams, but she ignored this, and the worry that Shuma might be listening at the door. For now she just let all her emotions surge free, as they never had since that fateful Agni Kai.

Why did her mother torment her? Inside her head it was bad enough, but seeing her reflected in Shuma was a test on her nerves that she wasn't prepared to take. Jin was loved, had been the object of pride. Why couldn't she, Azula, have that? She remembered Zuko once saying that it was she who had all the luck, but really it was him. He was the one sitting on the throne now, he had everyone's love, and he didn't even want the power.

She felt another guttural scream leave her, and she rolled onto her stomach to stifle the sounds. Shuma didn't come back inside, thought she might have been listening. The sounds weren't that hard to hear.

* * *

Somewhere between morning and midnight, Azula raised her head from the cot, and stumbled over to the writing desk, all neatly set up. Her plans had always been better laid out when she was able to jot down some ideas. She started with a list of names, then what she knew about each person, their weaknesses, strengths, what she would need to do in order to win, in order to make them suffer.

Azula finished at dawn, and that was when Shuma came in. She saw Azula's ruined face first, and the smudges of paint on the sheets. She set down a tray of tea on the floor in front of Azula.

"Oh, is that for me?" Azula set aside the brush and the roll of paper she had been working on.

"Of course." Shuma said." I hope you didn't have…too rough a night." There was silence for a long time. Azula stared at Shuma coolly, without blinking. "We should get that makeup off." Shuma said in a rush. She pulled Azula to her feet, and pushed her toward the main room.

"There's a basin with some water in it for you on the table." Azula glared at the woman distrustfully, but Shuma was turning to her dirty sheets. Azula left the room.

Shuma glanced at the rolls of paper on the floor curiously as she carried lumps of fabric in her arms. She glanced out into the hallway to see if Azula was still washing up, and then hunched over the papers, unrolling them carefully.

* * *

This was the position Azula found Shuma in when she returned to the room, her face cleared of all paint. She froze in the doorway.

"I would step away from those papers if I were you." She said quietly. Shuma jumped, whirling to face Azula with a blush that spread to her roots.

"I-I…" The woman stuttered, and looked into Azula's face with something like awed horror. "Who are you?"  
"You _really_ don't want to know that information."

"I think I have a right to know who's in my own house." Shuma stood up straight.

"And I thinkI made myself clear. You _don't want to know_." Azula walked casually towards her, yet Shuma felt her heart racing. The papers lay on the floor, and she snatched them up.

"You have the new Fire Lord's name on here, and his parents, and the avatar..." She tried to brandish them in Azula's face, but the girls\ didn't flinch. Instead, she slowly slipped the papers from Shuma's grasp, and stowed them in her belt. "What do you want?" Shuma asked. Sweat was trickling down the woman's back now.

"All I wanted was a place to stay." Azula began circling her.

"Who are you?" The old woman was shaking. Azula stopped in front of her and smiled.

"I think you already know." Several things happened at once. Shuma tried to run, tried to shout at the top of her lungs, but Azula's hand snapped out and slapped itself over her mouth, effectively silencing her. "Now we can't have that." She said quietly. "How can I trust you not to tattle on me? After all, I was your most important visitor to date."

The old woman shook her head emphatically, still straining against Azula's grip.

"But you see," Azula continued. "I don't trust people. Not anymore." Her voice took on a bitterness. "So logically…" She stopped talking. She felt Shuma's tears on her hand, and abruptly let her go. The old woman wheeled to face her, but this time, didn't bolt for the door. Perhaps she knew she could never make it.

"You monster." She said, tears still trickling down her face. "I let you into my house, told you about my family, shared my food with you! I trusted you to return my hospitality." Her whole being shook.

"That was your mistake." Azula said bitterly. "You should never trust anyone."

"So what will you do now? Where will you go?"

"What I'm planning to do would keep you up at night." Azula said quietly. She gathered the papers from the floor, and started walking towards the door. She turned to face Shuma. "I suggest you meet me outside." She paused. "Now."

* * *

Azula stood on the grass, facing the house. It seemed even smaller than before. Shuma was running up the path towards her, panting and breathless.

"Just leave." She gasped. "You have what you came for, so leave." Azula laughed. As if it were ever that easy.

"Oh, but you forgot one crucial detail." She turned her amber eyes on the old woman, placing the papers in neat folded squares, into her belt. She was still wearing the garb of a Kyoshi Warrior. "I don't trust anyone." She faced the house, and performed a basic firebending form, a short punch, releasing flame onto your opponent. Shuma gasped as she saw the blue fire, and stumbled away.

Azula said nothing as she departed, not even bothering to watch the house burn to the ground. She now knew for certain that Shuma knew who she was, but she wasn't worried. Her actions always had a purpose, even this last one. She wanted Shuma to know who would be coming after her in the end, because sometimes fear was just so much easier to use than love.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: _Hey everybody! I just want to thank everyone who reviewed, your support and constructive criticism really help me write each chapter, and make sure the next one is better than the last. This is the longest chapter yet, and I really enjoyed writing it. In turn, I hope you'll enjoy reading it!_

* * *

It was not a very long way to the Fire Nation Colonies, as it turned out. The next village Azula saw, she asked for directions, and with a little finagling, she was able to obtain a map. This made it far easier to navigate the vast land of the Earth Kingdom, and Azula soon found herself in one of the older colonies, perfectly positioned to get to the Fire Nation.

Azula wandered through the thankfully paved streets, admiring the architecture leisurely. The building style was much like that of the Fire nation, but more grounded, and less ornate than its mother country, most likely an Earth Kingdom influence.

Azula had been on the run for four days, and was now running out of the makeup she had to use to paint her face. As she neared the Fire nation, it became more likely that someone would recognize her, though she dressed like a peasant.

Azula stopped before a central palace, where the former governor must have lived. Judging from the signs of neglect in the garden, and the lack of furniture through the windows, it had been abandoned shortly after the war. The house was not what interested Azula, however. A very large and colorful poster of her was pasted on one of the columns of the building, asking for a reward of one hundred gold pieces for any information on her. It also happened to say that she used blue flames in her firebending, could shoot lightening, and was mentally unstable

"Only one hundred?" She said as she smiled. She walked past the poster with confidence, heading toward the docks.

Once there, she spotted a young man, perhaps sixteen, lifting a large box and heading toward a ship that bore a Fire Nation symbol, she ran up to him.

"Need a hand with that?" She asked, smirking. The guy turned, but kept the box aloft easily. He smiled.

"No, the ship's just over there." He gestured. "Are you onboard as well? I don't remember any Kyoshi Warriors being requested." Azula laughed flirtatiously.

"Oh, that's the reason I stopped you." She said, walking along next to him with her hands behind her back. One finger rested lightly on the tip of a fan. "You see, I need to get to the Fire Nation, but I forgot which boat I was supposed to take. Could you direct me?" She smiled and leaned closer. The young man blushed.

"You should take the last ship on the dock." He pointed to his left. "Are you supposed to protect the Fire Lord? He's coming back to the Fire Nation after disappearing for a few days; no one knows where he went. I think he might also be traveling with the Avatar and some others, but I'm not sure."

"Perfect." Azula smiled, and this time the man's face fell. He turned away quickly, nearly dropping his box.

"Um…I have to…stuff…" He stumbled away.

Azula wasn't paying attention though. She was heading toward the ship at the far end of the dock. It was in that moment that a large procession marched past her toward the ship. Azula melted into the shadows behind a large crowd gathering around the guards and the palanquin shrouded in red silk that they surrounded. There was so much commotion Azula could barely hear her own thoughts, but she stayed still and calm. She had to know who was in that palanquin.

There was a roar as a pale hand parted the curtain. Some booed, some cheered. Azula noticed a few girls up front screaming their heads off, a sure sign as to who was in the palanquin.

"Zuko." She whispered, her voice lost in the many already shouting it. He appeared, hair neatly tied in a topknot with the Fire Lord's headpiece set in it. Azula caught a glimpse of someone climbing out of the structure on the opposite side, with long black hair and red and black robes. She watched these two board the ship, the latter constantly in the shadow of the former.

Azula moved forward as the crowd dispersed. She knew what she had to do. The ship was now departing from the harbor, wheeling around slowly. She had thought Zuko was taking an airship when he came to visit her, but perhaps he liked the publicity and easy access to the public a regular ship provided. No matter. It made boarding all the easier.

Growing up born to rule meant Azula had to be familiar with the military, back then, an integral part of the Fire Nation. This being said, she knew every inch of a standard Fire Nation Navy ship, which Zuko was using, probably because that was all that was available to him. The Fire Nation had long since converted all factories to spouting out military vehicles.

Azula lay low, skirting around people, guards, and various crates full of freight. She made sure all the hubbub had died down sufficiently when she crouched down, and sprung forward, using her firebending as a propulsion system, careful to keep out of the way of the eyes of guards and random passersby.

She was only in the air for a moment before she latched on to the backside of the ship, swinging from the rungs built into the side that she knew would be there. Nobody cried out, or noticed anything suspicious, so she pulled herself toward a small circular window jutting out from the metal. She quickly peeked in to make sure no one was inside, and zapped the window open by its metal outer ring, sending the glass and iron tumbling into the sea.

Azula smirked. She loved lightning, so convenient, so powerful. It was a rush just to create and release the force of nature. Having made an opening, Azula widened it by melting the edges of the hole, and swung inside the room, landing softly on red carpet. It was a stateroom, one used for holding meetings and discussing strategy, unusually plush, but expected. Everybody saves the best for the Fire Lord.

She heard clumping footsteps and muffled voices coming from behind the only door in the room. Azula glanced around. She could hide underneath the large state table, the cupboards lining the room, or inside the coat closet by the door. There was a clicking as the lock turned.

* * *

"I hope the accommodations are to your liking Fire Lord Zuko?" Captain Arnook (ook as in book) said, leading his most esteemed guest into the stateroom. "You can discuss matters here; I'll lead your advisers in." The Captain took Zuko's cloak from his shoulders. "Oh, and I'll just put this away." He opened the coat closet doors, and stashed it inside.

"Thank you Captain." The Fire Lord said. The man left, bowing to the floor. Zuko sighed. It had been…quite a day. It had been quite a day for the past four days, in fact. He thought he heard a slight shifting from the Cupboards by the far side of the room, and noticed a gaping hole in the wall. Its edges glowed red with fading heat.

"What…?" He said, walking closer. He struggled to find an explanation. He could feel something nagging at him in the back of his mind, telling him he should know the answer.

"Your advisers Fire Lord." The Captain was back. He tried to bow out the door once more, but Zuko stopped him by putting a hand up.

"One moment Captain." He pointed to the hole. "What is that?"

The man's face paled, but he recovered quickly. "Oh, just a little…mishap one of the guards had, accidentally blew out the porthole while training at the docks, I'll see to it right away." He backed out the door before Zuko could say anything.

"Well…that was weird." Mai said, sitting down in one of the chairs that ringed the table.

"It's no matter, didn't you hear? He's taking care of it!" A thin grey haired man piped up. "And Fire Lord, I have no idea why you insisted on inviting _her_." He pointed at Mai. "She has no business on this ship, or even in the Earth Kingdom. Why is she here? The Avatar I can understand…" Aang looked up as the man nodded to him.

Zuko frowned. "We all have things to discuss, and Mai is here to give her input, the same as you." He sat down next to her, and gestured to the two others to sit. Aang shook his head as the thin man sank down with a scowl.

"Aang, you're not my bodyguard." Zuko said with a sigh.

"The Avatar's job is to keep balance in the world…And I can't do that if you're dead! I mean, Azula might…you know." He shrugged, holding his staff in a tight grip.

"I still need your help with this." Zuko said. Aang stood for a while, waiting to see how long Zuko would keep quiet. He sat down.

"Alright." Zuko said. He turned to the people seated around him. The thin man snorted. Mai glared at him.

"I'm sorry, but who is _he_?" She pointed, almost lazily. Zuko groaned.

"He's my official right hand, okay? He handles…taxes. He's my accountant."

"Your accountant is your right hand?"

"It's…hard to explain-"

"Then why don't _I_ explain it?" The thin man said pointedly. No one spoke, so he forged ahead. "My name is Nang Chong. Most people call me Chong." He paused, as if waiting for confirmation of something. Again, no one spoke. "Um…and I have more political experience than anyone at the present court, so the Fire Lord kindly asked me to help with some political matters!" He beamed at Zuko. Mai glanced sideways at her boyfriend.

"He was the only one at court who didn't resign, or run into hiding after my father was dethroned." He sighed. Chong nodded, clearly proud of this.

"I actually _was_ once an accountant!" He said. Aang rolled his eyes.

"Alright already! Now that we've met everyone, can we _please_ talk about Azula's escape?" He shouted.

"I really don't see what all the fuss is about." Chong said. "I mean, she's only fourteen…right?"

"I'm twelve." Aang said.

"Have you _met_ my sister?" Zuko added.

"She's terrifying." Mai deadpanned.

"Um, okay." Chong said, shifting uncomfortably.

"Did she say anything to you when you visited her?" Aang looked to the Fire Lord.

"Yeah, she asked me about politics, how things were going."

"Really? Nothing about hating your guts, wanting to kill you?"

"She actually said she didn't hate me the last time we talked." Zuko got quiet. Aang tried to sort the new information out. Chong still looked confused. Mai sighed.

"Any word on how she escaped?" Mai said as she flicked out a knife from her inner sleeve and began playing with it. Chong jumped with a yelp, sending his chair screeching back. Everyone looked up, including Mai, who was still holding her knife.

"Problem?" She asked. Chong swallowed hard.

"No…no problem. Were you going to answer Fire Lord?" Chong scooted his seat back into position. _With these kids, it's better not to ask,_ He thought.

"Yes." Zuko said. "We got word from the asylum that many of the guards saw a Kyoshi Warrior wandering the halls of the healing center, when they were only stationed to protect Azula."

"And no one stopped this warrior? No one asked her why she was there?" Mai said, Chong still eyeing her knife.

"Apparently not." Zuko replied. "A real Kyoshi Warrior, identified by her fellow warriors, was found dead on Azula's bed. Her robes were stolen."

"So Azula stole the clothes, and made her escape in plain sight!" Aang said, still trying to process. "But really, no one talked to her?"

"Another guard was found dead at a back door after some yelling, and shortly after one of the komodo rhinos was stolen. I'm guessing he's the only one who tried." Zuko sat back. They were all silent for a while.

"She killed two people." Mai finally said.

"Hold on!" Chong stood up. "You're telling me that your _sister_." He gestured at Zuko. "Your sister, firebending prodigy she may be, just up and killed two people!? She's…she's just a child!" Zuko looked down at the table.

"She was never a child." He said. "My father saw to that."

"Oh." Chong seemed to grasp something in that moment, and he sat back down.

"I think it's safe to say that she might be coming for you? For all of us?" Aang said cautiously.

"I guess so." Zuko said. He seemed to be deep in thought. He looked over at the hole in the wall again. "I'm going to talk to the captain." He stood up.

"Wait! Should we stay here?" Chong asked.

"Do what you like." Zuko said, and the meeting was adjourned.

* * *

Azula slowly climbed out of the cupboards, avoiding several ornate porcelain teapots on her way out. The stateroom had been deserted just a few minutes ago. She stretched luxuriously, savoring the movement after being holed up for so long. Her makeup and Kyoshi Warrior garb were still intact, not that it would do much good here. Still, she was very glad to have picked this room to break into. It had been very enlightening.

So they had figured out her escape? The question was really, what were they going to do about it? Clearly Aang was protecting Zuko, since she _had_ tried to kill him the last time they had met. Azula laid eyes on a rope hanging down from the ceiling opposite the door. She smiled, a plan forming in her head. She had seen these before.

Azula walked up to the rope, and pulled on it, letting it bounce back up after a second. Somewhere in the ship, a bell had gone off.

Azula waited by the door, hands behind her back in a position of utter ease. The metal swished open, to reveal a vaguely confused female servant.

"You call-" She started to say, before Azula struck the woman in the head by the butt of her hand.

Working quickly in case the servant woke up, Azula stripped her of her clothes, just a red shift and tan pants, and thankfully, a handkerchief used to keep her hair back. This could cover her face, and keep even those familiar with it from recognizing her immediately. Azula put this all on, and dressed the girl in her Kyoshi Warrior garb, even going so far as to paint her face. Once the girl woke up, the Avatar and company might mistake her for their missing escapee.

Azula flashed back to her time in the cupboard, and retrieved a teapot from there, along with a silver serving tray, and several cups. Azula left the room, carefully stepping over the unconscious body laid out on the floor with her hands folded over her stomach. Azula positioned the handkerchief over her mouth, and bowed her head. She started to walk in a sort of shuffling gait, not her usual proud stride.

Azula encountered no guards in the halls as she tried to navigate the ship for several minutes, but from the many blueprints she had been forced to pore over as a child, and living on such a ship for days searching for Zuko and her uncle, she was able to locate the living quarters. There were two guards stationed outside one door at the end of a long hall. Azula stopped as she saw the door move. Her brother came out slowly, as if talking to someone on the other side, then he turned to the guards.

"Where did they say they found Azula?" He asked. The girl in question still stayed rooted to the spot, her ears catching her name. The guard mumbled something through his helmet that Azula couldn't make out.

"Alright, and the Avatar's on his way? Good, keep an eye on my room, don't let anyone enter." Zuko said, walking briskly away after the guards nodded in understanding. He didn't even glance at Azula, who had started to move again in her slow, halting way, the tray with tea set on it held to her eye level, just in case. She stopped in front of the guards, still keeping her eyes downcast.

"Tea for the lady." She said, making her voice higher than usual.

"Wait..." The guard on the left leaned close to her, suspicious. "How did you know there was anyone else in here? The Fire Lord himself made sure no one knew…" Azula could have said many things right then. She could have said she heard Zuko talking to someone in his room, and to protect the room, which would have been silly if there was no one inside. She could have made a joke about the Fire Lord hiding his meetings with his girlfriend.

"The Lady Mai called for tea herself." She simply said. The guard nodded, seemingly pleased by this answer. His friend on the right still said nothing, but let Azula inside, closing the door behind her. Azula quickly turned, and locked it from the inside.

"You're back soon, I thought…" Mai's voice faltered out. Azula turned to see Mai sitting in a chair, her feet propped up on the armrest, a book dangling from her hand.

"Well Mai, fancy meeting you here." Azula said, taking off the kerchief with a flourish. "I thought you were a lady." Mai flushed, but got up slowly, circling around the bed in the center of the room so she could see Azula head on, but she was still a good distance away.

"What are you doing here?" Mai asked, composing herself, her face showing as little emotion as possible. "Neither Zuko nor the Avatar are here. In fact, the Fire Lord just left." Azula smiled.

"You must have realized that they are the bigger fish, more likely targets…but I like to build suspense." She edged slowly closer to Mai, a little at a time.

"What do you mean?" Mai said.

"I mean I want them to know what's coming to them, so by the time I arrive, they'll be scared. Of course, in your case, I kill two buzzard wasps in one blast." Mai said nothing. Azula's smile grew wider. "By hurting you, I hurt Zuko." Mai's hand snapped like lightening. Azula arched backwards, landing on her hands in a backbend, the shuriken aimed for who knows where, whizzing harmlessly past her, bouncing off the metal wall. It left a dent.

Azula flipped to an upright position, hands ready. Mai had a knife out, but she didn't advance.

"I still don't understand, how did you know I was here? We tried to keep things hidden." Azula started to circle closer again as Mai spoke.

"You mean you and Zuko? Well I just know people don't I? I knew you wouldn't be far from Zuko, not after _I_ escaped. And of course, you were my friend; supposedly you would know what I would try to do next." Azula couldn't keep the smile off of her face. Mai's gaze was still steely, however.

"I was never your friend." Azula snapped.

"So you admit it!?" She screamed. "You were never scared of me! You coerced Ty Lee into betraying me! It was all you! Always you!" Azula couldn't make sense of what she was saying. She sank to the ground, visibly shaking. Mai approached her cautiously.

"Fear is not a way to make friends Azula." She said.

"It did work. For a time. And how else was I supposed to make you do anything? Sure, you wanted to be around a princess, but you would be the ones with power, really. You could pack up and leave, laughing at me for my stupidity." Azula shook her head, curling up into a ball at the foot of the bed. Mai was less than two feet from her. "But I was smart enough to tip the scales; I made you know that I was the one in charge. So you could never leave me." Azula felt Mai's hand on her shoulder, and then she realized she was crying. She looked up at Mai's face, which could almost be described as sympathetic. She reached out quickly, and grabbed Mai's dominant hand.

* * *

Zuko was berating the captain for his mistakes. When he had first lied in an attempt to cover up what he thought was his own crew's mistake, he had instead covered up Azula's entry onto the ship. Arnook had then tried to make up for it by searching for Azula. He thought he had found her in the very stateroom they had just left, why else would a Kyoshi Warrior be on the ship?

It took less than a minute for Zuko to race back to the stateroom, thinking he was about to have the fight of his life. Instead, he had found the Captain mercilessly interrogating a poor girl in Kyoshi Warrior garb while two guards held her immobilized. Aang had just arrived as well, and was trying to stop the captain, who was ignoring the Avatar's explanations.

"Enough!" Aang had finally shouted, and let loose a burst of air, flinging the guards away from the poor, whimpering girl.

Zuko wasn't sure what happened next to her, as Aang started to take over in that area. He had instead advanced on Captain Arnook.

"What do you think you're doing?!" He shouted. "First you lie about the hole in your ship, and then you start-"

"I was only trying to help, Fire Lord!" The Captain said in desperation, he was bowing again. "You see, she was lying unconscious, and-"

"Stop." Zuko said, putting up a hand in front of Arnook's face. "Since we're already at sea, I can't fire you, but let me tell you, you won't be captain for very long afterwards if I have anything to say about it!"

It was then, with Arnook shaking in his pointy toed boots, that Zuko heard it. Mai's scream, a guttural, blood curdling scream. He had never heard Mai sound so…in pain. Zuko glanced toward Aang, and they both took off in the direction of the sound, Aang leaving Zuko in the dust with his airbending-enhanced run.

Zuko made it to his room with the guards nowhere in sight. Aang had probably scared them off. He wrenched open the door to find his room smoking and in shambles. Mai was curled up on the floor in the fetal position.

"Mai!" Zuko screamed. He tried to run over to her, but the battle going on around him arrested his attention.

Aang was fighting Azula. Blue fire flew everywhere as Azula let off blast after blast. At one point she spun fire into a ball, then started firing off streams at Aang, who had to dodge the searing missiles.

"Zuko!" Aang yelled. He locked eyes with his friend, and Zuko knew what he had to do. Azula spun in a circle, unleashing a ring of flames that Zuko cut through. He launched himself at her, grabbing her hands and forcing them behind her back. She kicked and yelled at him, her hands glowing with heat. Zuko struggled to hold on.

"Aang!" He shouted. The Avatar finally made it over to Azula, but seemed to be building up his courage. Slowly, too slowly for Zuko's liking, he placed his right thumb on her forehead, and his left on her heart.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: _To those of you who have submitted reviews about how terrible the ending of the last chapter was for Azula, have a little faith. Azula is a favorite character of mine, and I won't allow her to slip into depression or a manic state. It was a logical and necessary step for Aang to take, and for Azula to suffer in order to heal herself. She would exhaust herself on revenge if otherwise. This next chapter will give all you guys some hope, if you read to the end._

* * *

It was like strings being cut. It was like losing the stuffed platypus bear she'd had when she was five to her father's anger. It was terrible. She fought back, of course, but part of her knew what the Avatar was doing, that he had done this to her father, mostly because of the nurse's talking about the incident when they thought she had been inebriated with tea. Then she felt she couldn't win. If the Avatar had beaten her father, he could no doubt beat her.

Father always said to pick the battles she knew she could win. But it was over, and she had lost.

Azula heard Zuko say, "I can't believe you actually did it." He almost sounded…sorry. Azula tried to lift her body up from the ground but found that she couldn't move her arms very well. She tried to punch fire in Zuko's direction but the movements were meaningless, their connection lost. Azula let everything go limp. It didn't seem real, but the whole thing was over. Her bending was gone.

"How's Mai?" asked Aang as he held her back. Azula opened her eyes to see him standing over her with a look of hesitation on his face.

There was a groan over on the other side of the room. Mai was in pain. Azula looked over to see Zuko lifting her body up. She was still curled into a ball, not letting anyone else touch her. Tears stained her face, a surprising amount of emotion for her. There was some murmuring as Zuko bent his head close to hers, and then he quickly jerked it away. He had seen something and turned his eyes to Azula. She could see that he was no longer sorry for her. Not in the slightest.

Something in his gaze set Azula off and she started to laugh. She felt an overwhelming joy and bitterness at what she had done, at her revenge. The only plan she had completed, and it would apparently be the last. Her laughter was that of a crazed animal. She wouldn't stop jerking around when Aang tried to help her up, so he called guards in to help. By that time Zuko had left without a word to anyone, presumably to take Mai to a healer.

Azula calmed down soon enough when the two guards started to drag her off to what Aang had said was a "spare room." She could only guess what that meant.

"What...did you do to me?" Azula asked, thinking the sound of her own voice sounded funny in her ears. It was like she was in a dream. Aang shifted uncomfortably as he walked beside the guards.

"I energy bended you," he said slowly and carefully. "You can no longer use your bending."

Azula said nothing in reply and the group walked in silence for a couple minutes.

"Someone should tell mother," she said suddenly, the two guards still dragging her between them.

Aang couldn't bring himself to speak.

"Someone should tell mother," she said again, her voice rising slightly and again, neither the guards nor the Avatar spoke. "Don't tell father," she said, quietly this time.

Aang turned to her. "You don't have to worry. I took his bending away too. He won't hurt you…or anything." Aang seemed unsure of how to comfort her. At least he knew who Ozai was.

Azula looked sideways at him, where he was walking beside the guards. She started to laugh again, and it didn't stop until the guards laid her on a bed in a guest bedroom aboard the ship.

"Will that be all, Avatar?" one guard asked as Azula settled down.

"Yeah," Aang said, still eyeing the girl. "Set up a guard rotation outside this room, make sure she doesn't leave unless she's with someone." The guards nodded and left the room. Aang pulled a chair up to the bed.

"This is a real room," Azula said, bunching the covers up into a mess with her hands.

"…okay," Aang said slowly. She seemed very…off, but there was something he hadn't gotten a chance to ask Zuko before he left. "What did you do to Mai?" Again, there was laughter.

"It was sweet," she whispered. "It tasted sweet." She sighed, and rolled onto her side, away from the Avatar. Aang moved his chair so he could see her face.

"You didn't…kill her did you?" he asked. She gave him a funny look.

"Okay," he said. "That was a stupid question, but what did you do to her? She might be in real pain!"

Azula said nothing, but rolled around to face the other side of the room. Aang groaned and moved his chair back.

"Look, I'm sorry I took you're bending away-"

"Don't you DARE say sorry!" Azula suddenly screamed. "If you were sorry you wouldn't have done it would you? Would you?!" She got louder with each utterance. Aang sat back, stiff in his chair. "It's gone! It's gone it's gone!" She started chanting, holding her head in her hands. Hot tears ran down her cheeks, she could taste the salt. It seemed all too real now, the whole thing crashing down on her in one giant soul crushing wave. "I'm useless, worse than useless!" Azula raised her head to wipe her face, and caught sight of herself in the mirror across from the bed. Aang still sat on the bedside chair, watching all this in shock and pity. "STOP LOOKING AT ME!" Azula yelled at the mirror, and made as if to lunge for it. Aang caught her mid jump, holding her back.

"Don't hate yourself Azula, it wasn't your fault," Azula heard Ursa say. She stopped fighting Aang as she listened to a voice only she could hear.

"It was my fault," she whispered. "Stop talking to me!" she shouted. Her breath moved in quick gasps as she started shaking again. All she could think about was her bending's absence. All she could feel was the emptiness it left behind.

"Azula, who are you talking to?" Aang asked, but he got no reply. He thought about calling the guards in, but worried if they'd set her off again. Eventually she just lay back on the bed, crying and rubbing her arms like they were sore. Aang decided he would try again with the questions.

"Alright, now that that's over," he said, building up courage. "You were on this ship to attack Mai…right?"

"It was easy," she said in a deadpan.

"Okay, can you tell me what you did to her?" He tensed, unsure of her next move. She rolled to face him.

"I made it so that Zuko can never look at Mai again without hatred, without remembering the pain. I did to Mai what you did to me." Azula said the words with all the seriousness in the world. Aang had no idea what she was talking about.

"You did this to me," she said slowly, clenching her hands into fists, as if just realizing this fact. Aang shifted nervously as she continued. "Were you planning this? Was Zuko plotting with you?! TELL ME!" On the last word she lunged forward, strangling the Avatar, nothing but pure rage and desperation in her eyes. Aang started to choke. He tried talking, tried screaming, but nothing would come out. He felt his consciousness slipping away.

Aang forced himself awake, and with a huge burst of willpower, swung his arm in a circle, airbending Azula away from him. Her clawed hands were ripped from his throat as she was carried on the current and slammed against the mirror, shattering it. She hit the floor and didn't move.

* * *

Zuko paced outside the metal door of the healing room on the ship, waiting for Mai to come out, or let him inside. He couldn't believe how angry he was, or how worried. He tried to focus on details, but there's only so much you can look at in all metal surroundings before you get bored. He felt a gust of air to his right, and knew that Aang was standing beside him.

"How's Mai?" the Avatar asked.

"She'll live," Zuko said. He started to pace again.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hang on! What happened to her? When I talked to your sister she wouldn't tell me anything!" Zuko stopped moving and seemed to calm himself.

"How is she holding up? This can't be easy for her." He seemed to say the words sarcastically, as if telling himself a private joke.

"Um…" Aang rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I kind of…knocked her out." Zuko stared.

"What? She tried to choke me!" Aang said. Zuko sighed, and Aang saw twin daggers of flame erupt from his fists.

"She scarred Mai," he finally said.

"What?"

"I said she scarred Mai." Zuko looked him in the eyes, and Aang saw not the calm and collected Fire Lord, but a boy who didn't know what to do. "It's her hands. Both her hands." He started pacing around Aang, tugging at the strands of his hair that had come out of his topknot in the battle with Azula. "It's likely she'll never be able to throw again, or even pick something up without pain…but that's not the worst of it." He turned to Aang and grasped his shoulders. "Aang…I can't look at her."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I physically can't look at her! Every time I see her, and the scars, I see my father! It's like he's haunting me, and now the one thing, the one person…" he seemed to realize what he was saying, and he dropped his hands.

"Zuko," Aang said as he stared at his friend. "She'll recover."

"You don't know that!" he shouted suddenly. "I mean…look what happened to me." His hand hovered over his own scar, but he didn't seem able to touch it.

"That's because you didn't have a water tribe healer!" Aang said confidently. "I just sent for Katara…also I want to be sure I didn't really hurt Azula." At the mention of his sister, Zuko got restless again.

"I can't believe she would do this! But then again, she did recently kill someone," he trailed off.

"…I think you should talk to her," Aang said hesitantly.

"Are you crazy?" Zuko yelled. "No, that's right. She is."

"Zuko I'm serious! I think she needs you. She keeps talking to someone and I don't know who it is! You're her family, and family needs to stick together." He stared Zuko down. The Fire Lord sighed.

"Fine," he said.

* * *

Azula opened her eyes groggily. Her head hurt, specifically the back part where she could feel a bump starting to swell.

"Ugghhhh," she groaned.

"Feeling any better?"

Azula jerked her head towards her brother's voice. He sat in the same chair Aang had, but unlike Aang, his face was a stony mask.

Azula punched the air without thinking, but of course, no fire was released. Zuko jumped back. She then proceeded to sluggishly rise from the bed, ignoring Zuko's presence in the room. She found an open spot in the middle of the space, and tried to perform every basic firebending form she could think of. Her fists flew, her feet kicked, her arms cut through the air, each with a deadly precision. As Azula grew more and more desperate, she started to shout, to cry, until her strikes became frantic and sloppy, her screams of anguish louder. She collapsed in a heap on the floor, and saw a shadow cross her field of vision.

Rolling to face Zuko, Azula tried to attack him again, but he caught her wrist before she could make contact. Zuko looked shocked, not that he had blocked her, but at the state she was in. He let go of her wrist, and helped her up. Azula stumbled as her brother led her back to bed, her face puffy and red from crying, her throat raw from screaming. She lay down on the red silk sheets and didn't move. She didn't know what had come over her, but she had felt the need to make sure, the need to hope. It was all settling in now, all real. She stared ahead.

"I guess you're not feeling any better," Zuko said. "You were out for a while. I had to wait an entire day to speak to you."

"Why…why speak to me?" Azula tested out her voice, scratchy from misuse.

"Aang's idea, he has some strange impression that you and I have to make nice since we're family."

"Mother agrees."

"What?" Zuko leaned back suddenly.

"Mother." Azula pointed at the shards of the mirror that still remained in their wooden frame. "She won't leave me alone." Her voice still sounded weak.

"Mother was banished. She's not here," Zuko said slowly.

"She talks to me. She didn't used to." Azula's face was blank, her eyes half closed.

"What does she talk to you about?"

"She tells me she loves me." At this, Azula's face creased in bitterness. New tears forged their trails. "She was always a bad liar."

Zuko said nothing, but after a few minutes he eventually started to trace the edge of his scar with his finger. This brought Mai back to the forefront of his mind.

"How could you hurt her like you did?" he asked. "Mai, I mean. Wasn't she your friend?"

"Was she? I don't know." The shadow of a smile flickered across Azula's face. Her eyes hardened.

"Is that all you can say?"

"I can say that when I burned her, it felt good. She betrayed me, and it was punishment she should have received long ago. Punishment for helping you, a traitor." Azula looked at him feverishly. Zuko seemed to tense as she spoke, clenching his hands.

"Don't you feel her pain now? Don't you feel sorry?"

"My pain was brought on by you, by the Avatar."

"By yourself!" Zuko stood up abruptly.

Azula did nothing but lie there as little wisps of flame started to escape from Zuko's fists. Instead she spoke. "Is that what you said to yourself as you fell asleep last night? To justify your actions?"

"Don't talk to me about right and wrong. Mai…Mai…" he couldn't seem to find the words, but grew angrier all the same.

"Mai what? Is Mai ashamed of her disability now? Will she not let you in to see her?" Zuko looked away at Azula's words.

"I see," she continued. "Then she knows what I know."

"I don't understand!" Zuko burst out. "If you're against me then take it out on me, don't bring her into this!"

"Silly Zu-Zu!" she laughed. "I have a bone to pick with both of you! And don't you know, the best way to get to a person is through the ones they love." Her voice grew soft and teasing as she spoke.

"Enough! You make everything worse! Everything you touch is poison!" Zuko was now letting on how angry he'd become. Fire was coming out of his nose.

"That's right. You can't look at Mai can you? She knows it. That's why she won't let you in! It's because of you!" Azula couldn't stop talking. She could see Zuko getting more and more unhinged, but she didn't stop.

"You knew this would happen!" Zuko shouted. "You wanted it to happen!"

"I know my target," she said.

"You're a monster." Zuko seemed to realize what he was saying, and continued in a softer, defeated tone. "I thought you said you didn't hate me."

"Well that one should be easy to figure out!" she laughed hysterically. "What was that little mantra you used to chant? Azula always lies? Azula always lies?!" She started to shout the words, over and over until Zuko yelled in frustration, clamping his hand over her mouth, and bringing his smoking fist up to her face.

"Well do it then!" Azula said around his hand. "End my miserable useless life! You and mother are both the same! You hate me." She waited. Nothing happened.

"Sometimes I really wonder what happened to you to make you so messed up," Zuko said, releasing her and collapsing into the chair.

"Don't say that." She was silent for a time. "Why didn't you do it?"

"You wanted me to," he said, but he turned his head away and wouldn't look at her.

"It would have been just as well," she said, rolling away from him. "What am I for? What do I do now? I have nothing; the Avatar took it all away. He took everything from me. You and him. The banes of my existence." They sat in silence for a time. After a few minutes they felt the ship shudder, and one of the guards popped in.

"We've docked at the Fire Nation my lord," he said.

"Thank you," said Zuko. The guard didn't leave. "Yes?" Zuko asked.

"I was…just wondering if everything was alright," the guard said.

"Everything's fine," Zuko replied.

"Oh," said the guard. "It's just that, you know…there was a lot of screaming and…yelling going on. You're not injured are you?"

"No, I'm really fine."

"Okay, just asking. You know, because of…" He looked at Azula, still lying on the bed, now staring at her broken mirror. "That's all." The guard retreated outside, and closed the door.

"You should be proud. People are still scared of you, even without your bending," Zuko said.

"I should be," she said. Zuko looked at her curiously. She seemed different now, more so than ever. She seemed almost dead. How could he leave her like this? She was crazy, talking to their banished mother, daring him to kill her, how would she fair in her new prison? That's where the Avatar would no doubt take her, another prison. Zuko walked over to the port hole in the wall and looked out.

"We're in the Fire Nation again. How does it feel to be back home?" Zuko asked.

"Stop talking. There are too many voices already," she snapped. Zuko stayed silent for a long time. He knew he would have to leave in at least thirty minutes to oversee matters in the capital, and to see Mai after her healing session, but he was wrestling with himself now, debating, agonizing. Then he heard something. It was Azula again, whispering the same phrase over and over again to herself. "Leave me alone."

* * *

Azula fell into a sort of trance. She could hear voices in her head, whirling in the chaos. She still stared at the mirror, where she saw her mother sitting in the same chair Zuko had just left. She was multiplied ten times by all the cracks and shards of glass. Azula heard her mother singing to her, but she couldn't tell what song it was. She wanted her to stop. Suddenly she heard a creak and a groan, as metal scraped against metal. She held her hands to her ears and tried to shut it all out. Azula felt a hand on her shoulder, tugging her to her feet.

"Come on," the person said, pushing her toward the now open porthole.

"Who's that?" she asked. "Zuko?"

"Yeah, it's me," he said.

"What are you doing?" She tentatively put one leg out the window with his help. They were about ten feet above the water, above the dirty harbor water, but she wasn't thinking about that now.

"I'm helping you escape," Zuko said. Azula was now sitting on the edge, about to slide through, but she twisted around to see her brother, hardly believing he would do this.

"You'll regret this. You know you will." He shook his head, as if to disagree.

"There's no future for you here, no hope. You deserve a second chance, just like Aang gave me." He twisted her around, so she was facing the water again. "I guess I realized just now that all that extra attention from father that I craved would have made me crazy. I mean, look what happened to you." And just like in her dream, he pushed her into the water, only this time she didn't try to blast his head off for doing it.

* * *

Zuko closed the window and latched it shut, then quickly exited the now unoccupied chambers. The guards didn't question him as he swept past them without a word. He was thankful for that. Right now his head was buzzing with so many thoughts he doubted he'd be able to answer them untruthfully.

He made his way down long metal corridors all the way back to Mai's room, where he knew she'd been taken. He knocked on the door.

"She's not there." Zuko whirled around to face Aang, his staff in hand as usual.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"They took her into town just a few minutes ago. Katara rode over on Appa to treat her burns," the boy explained.

"Why aren't you down there? You've been away from Appa for four days now right?"

"Yeah. I just thought one of my other friends needed me more," the Avatar said, looking pointedly at Zuko.

"Oh…well I'm fine now that you mention it." He started to walk in the direction of the main deck. Aang moved with him.

"How's Azula?"

"She was talking to our mother."

"Your mother?" Aang was silent as he tried to puzzle things out. "I've never seen your mother. What happened to her?"

"Banished," Zuko said, staring at Aang. He'd forgotten he'd never told the Avatar what had happened to Ursa.

"Oh…I'm sorry," Aang said. He looked ahead. "We'll have to deal with Azula after Mai's healed, maybe Katara can do something for her. She can't cause that much trouble in just a few hours can she?"

"We'll see," Zuko said. Azula was wrong though, he didn't regret his decision. At least not yet.

* * *

Azula swam frantically towards shore, anxious to avoid the incoming boats. The water sloped up to meet the land, and she dragged herself onto shore, still weak from her fall into the harbor, and from being knocked out the previous day. A few passersby on the street stared at her soggy self as she stumbled by, but she kept her head low. It was a small town, unused to large navy ships docking. Azula thought she glimpsed the Avatar's enormous bison soaring overhead, but she assumed it was just her head playing tricks on her.

Azula stumbled down alleys and streets, trying to find her way out of the town so she could get away from her captors. She was still puzzling out why Zuko had released her. It made no sense. He thought she was crazy, he hated her, she had hurt Mai. Maybe he was crazy too.

Azula found herself in an alleyway with a dead end, and several rather rough looking people sitting about with cards. One of them glanced toward her as she held herself up against the wall, and drew his knife.

"Whatcha doin here girl?" he asked, advancing with his knife. "Got 'ny money?" The others were quickly getting the idea, and surrounding her as well. Some had clubs, others swords, even knives like the first. All had weapons, and she had none. Not anymore.

"Money?" the man said again, holding out his hand and rubbing his fingers together.

"N-no," She replied. Her brain was a haze, she should be looking at their stances, analyzing them, but instead she was terrified, unsure.

"Alright," the man said. The circle around her kept closing in. "You can still be of some use. Some fun." All the people were smiling now, crooked toothed grins. Azula lashed out.

She caught the first guy by surprise, punching him in the neck, and then kneeing him in the stomach. He fell down in a heap. Azula followed him down, putting her knee on his chest, and her hand on his throat.

Azula breathed hard, suddenly aware of what she could do. She could kill this man right now, in front of everyone. That would scare them off, that would make them all afraid. But she didn't do it. Instead she kept thinking about Zuko and Mai, and all the people she had hurt. She thought about Zuko giving her a second chance. For what? A second chance for what? She got up, and ran.

Her bare feet pounded the paved streets as the group of street thugs chased her out of the alleyway. One in the lead caught her, stabbing her deep in her left forearm. Azula screamed, and flipped him over her head, landing him sprawled on the stones. Azula kept running, but the group stopped chasing her when they went to tend to their fallen comrade, who had probably just gotten his arm broken.

Still she didn't stop. She didn't even stop when the road beneath her feet changed from paved to dirt, or when a farmer on the street tried to catch her, telling her she was bleeding. She knew that. A few hours passed, and it was night when her exhaustion and blood loss caught up with her. Azula saw a barn by the road with the door slightly ajar, and she stumbled up to it. She crawled inside, her arm still bleeding.

There were two beggars already inside, lying on the hay. The barn was entirely empty except for hay, and the two people.

"You look a sorry state," one said. "There's room over there." He pointed to another large stack of hay in the corner.

"Get out," Azula said. Her head felt dizzy.

"Hey, there's no need to fight!" the guy shouted. "We were here first!" The person next to him woke up with a sucking sound. "Wassat?" the second one asked.

"I said get out! Just get out!" shouted Azula. She stumbled toward them.

"You're bleeding!" the first said. "I can help you! I can-" Azula grabbed the front of the man's shirt.

"Get out! Didn't you hear me?! Are you deaf?" She started to cry, though she had no idea why. She let go of the man, and he stumbled away, looking at her in a sort of fascinated horror. Azula had started to talk, but the words weren't for him.

"What is happening?!" the second person asked, standing up.

"We're leaving," the first said, still watching Azula scream and shout and cry. "We're going to get a doctor."

Azula didn't see them leave. She merely collapsed after a few more minutes of hearing her mother tell her she should calm down. It wasn't helping. The hay was scratchy, but plush, and better than the hard ground. The barn was illuminated only by the moon coming through the open loft, and the cracks in the roof.

Azula tried to make sense of the mess in her head. Her mother's voice had disappeared for the first time all day. She cautiously felt the edge of the stab wound, and found her arm was soaked in blood. The pain was intense. Azula kept on crying at the desperation of her situation, and how far she had fallen in so short a time. One question still haunted her. Why had Zuko let her go? All she had been doing when he helped her up to escape was dealing with mother's incessant voice. She had been curled up on the sheets, nearly crying. Had her weakness…helped her?

The impossibility of such a thing almost made Azula laugh. Showing weakness made you…weak. Then why had Zuko helped her? He had rambled about second chances, how father had made her crazy, how she deserved something better. That was wrong. She deserved what she got, she hadn't been strong enough.

Not strong enough to defeat the Avatar? I am one of many. I am like my father, Azula thought. She tried to remember when her father had realized she was better than Zuko. The day didn't come. It had always just…been. Her father had pushed her to be better, to be perfect. He had expected nothing less. Her mother had expected nothing.

She remembered the day she met Ty Lee and Mai. She was little, but already her father was training her at the ripe old age of six. He had sent her off to the Royal Fire Academy for girls soon after. It was the first day of school, but Azula hadn't been nervous. She knew that she was better, and the girls at the Academy knew it too. They smiled at her when she walked past, and bowed when she greeted them.

She had noticed Ty Lee right off the bat. Even then she liked to do cartwheels to impress the other girls, and people knew of her older sisters. They looked just like her. Azula recruited Ty Lee. It was what she called making friends. Her father had always said allies were stronger than friends, and friends were not your allies. She hadn't been very subtle then, and she was ruthless with her wits. She was also jealous.

It was when Ty Lee had tried talking to other girls that she had snapped. She had seen all too often what happened when people started to stray from you. Her mother was a prime example. She had made sure Ty Lee was hers and hers alone, and that everyone knew it. It was then that people started to talk.

"She's weird. I don't like her."

"Did you hear what she said? What do those words even mean?"

"Poor Ty Lee."

It had hurt, but she had dealt with it. She was the Fire Nation princess, and she made sure people knew what she could do, not so much with firebending, but with her status. The girls who had whispered their poison soon found themselves suspended for pranks they didn't engineer, in trouble for situations she had carefully crafted. The teachers didn't say anything. She made them know who held the real power as well.

Mai was a different case. She had come to Azula on her own, most likely driven by the political aspirations of her father. Azula had been wary of her, this moody, quiet girl, but she was nice to be around when Ty Lee became too enthusiastic. Thus, her group had been formed, and Azula learned firsthand the tactics her father had told her of. Fear, intimidation, power. They all worked perfectly. Until now.

Azula lay there in the hay for some time, reliving the events of her life, trying to make sense of her brain when nothing made sense in the real world. She heard a creak as the barn door opened wide, and lifted her head groggily to see several figures standing in the glow of the moon.

"I told you she was injured. Will you help her now?" The voice was one of the beggars she had scared off earlier.

"I never said I wasn't going to help her, I just said I was going to see." It was a man's voice, but one she hadn't heard. "What exactly is the matter with her?"

"She's crazy, for starters. Keeps talking to someone that's not there, screaming all the time. She tried to scare us from the barn."

"She did a good job. Apparently." The two homeless people were silent. "I'll treat her, but she'll owe me, just like all my patients." The new man continued, getting closer. He put a hand on her shoulder.

Azula's eyes opened in a flash, and she grabbed the man's wrist, her face hardening into a manic mask.

"Whoa!" The man jerked himself away. "How do you expect me to help you if you won't let me touch you?"

"You can't help me," Azula snapped.

"You're arm's hurt. I can fix it. I've healed a lot of stab wounds in this town."

"I don't care about it."

"You should. It could get infected. You could die."

"Good." The man was silent for a time. Azula heard the two beggars leave. The man spoke again.

"What's really bothering you?"

"What bothers me can never be fixed." She turned away from this strange man. He must be some mediocre healer, treating the poor in exchange for "favors."

"What is it?" he asked. His voice became low and soothing, and she felt herself relaxing.

"My bending," she finally said. The man stood up straight and smiled.

"Well believe it or not," he said. "I can actually help you with that. If you'll come with me." He gave her his hand.

She took it.


	8. Chapter 8

"How is she?" Zuko asked Katara as she emerged from Mai's room on the ship. They were sailing again, after Katara had done some emergency work in the village, and brought Mai back on board to sail home. It was now night and they were making good headway.

"She'll recover," Katara said wearily. She had flown over and barely had time to take a breath before setting about healing Mai. Zuko felt his face relax from the tense mask it had formerly been in. Katara looked around. "Do you know where Aang is?"

"Yeah, I think he went to see Appa, but . . ." Zuko stopped Katara as she moved past him. "Do you know if . . . Mai's well enough to have visitors?"

Katara's face softened. "Go ahead," she replied, and even opened the door for him. Zuko walked past her and shut it behind him.

Mai was lying on a large bed with rich brocade hangings and silk sheets. She lay back, propped up on some pillows with her hands folded delicately on her lap. They were wrapped in bandages, which was a vast improvement over how Zuko had seen them last. It reminded him all too clearly of the pain he had felt when his father had scarred him. He saw Mai quickly slip her hands into her long sleeves as he pulled a chair over to her bedside, sitting down in it slowly.

"Um . . . how are you feeling?" Zuko asked hesitantly.

"I'm fine," Mai said, staring at him intently. Zuko tried to focus on the headboard behind her, instead of looking into her eyes. "How are_ you_?" she asked. He frowned in surprise at the question.

"I'm . . . why . . .?"

"I know you're worried about that one time I wouldn't let you in." Zuko looked at her then, straight in the eyes. She surprised him again by wearing a look of concern.

"Well, yeah," he said. "I was worried that . . ."

"You tend to overreact, Zuko," Mai replied bluntly. "Do you remember your face when you first saw these?" She took her hands out of her sleeves and showed them to him, or at least tried to. He turned his head away. Mai sighed. "I was afraid you would do that."

"What?!" Zuko exclaimed. He felt himself tense up, Azula's words from before ringing in his ears.

"Yes, that." Mai smiled weakly as she slipped her hands back up into the folds of cloth. "Just . . . I thought you would need some time to cool down, so you wouldn't do anything . . . rash."

Zuko stared at her then, full on. She didn't seem so hurt, or nearly as angry as he'd pictured. He sighed. "I'm sorry Mai, it's just . . . looking at you made me think about my own scar. I felt like you had somehow been touched by Ozai through Azula, and I couldn't stand it . . ." He trailed off, looking at the floor.

"That's sweet," she said softly. She took her hand out of her sleeve, and reached out to Zuko, slowly. "But you don't have to worry about me, I'm fine. Katara even says I'll make a full recovery." Her finger traced the edge of Zuko's scar, and he tensed.

Zuko looked up, and stared at Mai, uncomprehending. He reached toward his face, and held her hand there, still looking at her. She let her hand fall into his lap, and he held it, rubbing it softly, feeling the bandages.

"You . . . you're going to make a full recovery," he said softly. She nodded, and let a small smile cross her face. Zuko paused, putting the words together in his head. Mai had forgiven him for his fit about her injury; she was going to get better. She was fine. Zuko thought about Azula. He thought about that split second decision he had made only yesterday. The full weight of it suddenly came crashing down, because Azula wasn't going to make a full recovery, at least not without help. Zuko stood up.

"Where are you going?" Mai asked, letting her hand slide off his lap.

"I have to tell the Avatar something," He said, a sense of urgency filling him. "While you were being healed, I did . . ."

* * *

"Hey, girl!" There was a voice. A male voice. It spoke again. "Miss, can you hear me?"

Azula slowly opened her eyes. Her lids felt like they weighed ten thousand pounds. Her whole body was weak, and there was a slow but steady throbbing pain in her left arm. There was also a man, who seemed to be bending over her with a look of concern on his face.

"You're an old man," Azula muttered, staring at the man's bushy white beard in surprise. He leaned back as he smiled at her.

"Well what did you think I'd be? A turkey duck?" He laughed at his own joke, and turned away for a second. He seemed to be mixing something together in a bowl.

Azula lay back on what appeared to be a cot of some sort, though it was very scratchy. Her brain was hazy still. She could remember being stabbed, Zuko pushing her out the porthole, Aang . . . the Avatar. Azula seemed hardly able to breath, she was choking up, physically frozen. The old man turned.

"Hey! Are you . . ." He was interrupted as Azula struggled to sit up, fighting the heaviness in each limb, clawing upward. The old man grasped her shoulder, trying to push her back down.

"You need rest! Don't strain-"

"NO!" Azula screamed. "IT'S NOT TRUE IT CAN'T BE TRUE!" She shoved his hand off, and struggled to her feet. She stood there panting for a second, her hair in disarray, arm bandaged and leaking. She was still terrifying. The old man stumbled back as the lunatic in front of him started to punch the air, or at least tried to.

Azula did the same movement again and again. She then focused on her palm, trying to make flame appear, tried to imagine its perfect light dancing on her fingertips. When nothing happened she collapsed onto her knees, a pose which she seemed to be in quite often lately.

Azula tried to keep the tears in this time. Then again, she was trying to do so many things all the time and failing at each one, it was a wonder she ever got anything done.

Azula kept on crying as her fingers grasped the dirt floor, for it was indeed dirt. She was dirt, the very dirt she had laughed at when she saw the poor in the streets, and the dirt she had pitied when she saw someone who had no skill or worth. She dug her hands into the earth and screamed at it. Then her mother was suddenly there, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Come on girl; let's get you back to bed," Ursa said. Azula let herself be led back to the cot, which suddenly didn't seem so scratchy anymore. Azula felt the hand on her shoulder pat her cheek awkwardly. She grasped it in a sudden burst of emotion, and relaxed onto the cot, finally at ease.

"So you've come back," Azula said quietly. "About time." The hand stayed in her vice-like grip, and Azula fell asleep.

Azula awoke to movement underneath her face. It seemed to be a hand trapped under her cheek. She looked up abruptly, and saw the old man from before yanking out his crushed limb.

"You're not mother," Azula barked out, shrinking back from him.

"Gee, what gave me away?" the man said, rubbing some life back into his hand. "I'm Juro, now that you mention it." He smiled sarcastically, and went about stroking his bushy white beard.

Azula flopped back onto the cot, feeling as though she had lost something. Her eyes must have been playing tricks on her. She also could have sworn that she saw the beard shift out of place as Juro went about tending it. Then again, it wasn't the first time she'd seen things that weren't there.

Seeing as she'd been preoccupied previously, Azula gazed at her surroundings. She appeared to be inside a low-roofed hut of some sort, with a dirt floor and a fire pit crackling on the ground. There were two doors in the wall in front of her. Overall, not the most comfortable place.

Light hit Azula's face from the only window in the room, blinding her momentarily. She cried out at this, shielding her face from the sun.

"Hey, don't tell me the medicine I gave you is wearing off already!" Juro cried, prying Azula's arms away. She spluttered as he force fed her some sort of bitter paste from the bowl he had previously been mixing. Azula shoved him off of her, and gave another cry of pain as her shoulder and forearm exploded in agony.

"Whoa! I told you not to strain yourself!" Juro scrambled back to her, but was wise enough not to touch her again. Azula struggled into a sitting position, which left her forehead beaded in sweat.

"How long have I been out?" she asked, glaring at him as if he had done her some personal offense.

"Just the night," he said, putting his hands up. "And it would be a good idea to stop attacking me, since I'm the only chance you have of getting back to normal."

Azula stared at him, wondering if she had heard right. She started laughing, just like on the ship. "Normal? You call me normal?" She somehow found this exceedingly funny. "I don't want to be normal. Normal is weak." She flopped back down on the cot, just because she didn't have the strength to hold herself up anymore.

She heard the man approach, and felt him kneel next to her cot. She tried not to look at him, but he held a bowl out to her, filled with a warm dark broth of some kind. It then hit Azula that she was hungry, starving really. She hadn't eaten since yesterday. Juro helped her up, and started to tip the bowl towards her mouth, but Azula grabbed it, gulping it down in one sloppy mouthful. She collapsed onto the cot, suddenly very tired. Her vision grew hazy.

"I'm sorry," Juro said, sounding not at all like an old man. "But for me to help you, you have to heal…" Azula blacked out.

* * *

Azula woke up yet again, but she felt different this time, like she'd been well rested. Her arm was freshly bandaged, and the bleeding seemed to have stopped. Juro was nowhere to be seen.

Azula sat up, much more easily this time, and stood. She swayed slightly, but was regaining strength. She wasn't sure what had happened last time she blacked out, but what she could remember was her breakdown.

"Zu-Zu . . ." she said to herself. She still couldn't believe he would help her. What had he said when he pushed her out the window? Aang had given him a second chance? She tried to mull this information out, but it was too much. Whenever she started to try and think about family, images swirled around her brain, muddling up her vision, she could hear random pieces of words.

"Crazy . . . Monster . . . Sister . . . Love . . ." All of these things just didn't seem to leave her alone, and she felt overwhelmed. Azula moved forward, and in a sort of twisted attempt to escape, pushed through one of the doors in the room and found herself in a tiny hospital.

Juro was there, with a hat on his head and his white beard. There were several cots shoved against the walls, and chairs in the middle where Juro was administering basic first aid. He was currently wrapping one girl's leg in a cast as she gripped her mother's arm, trying not to cry out in pain. The sick and elderly, or those worse off, lay on the cots, some of them sharing a single tiny bed. The room smelled like sick, and was a cramped piece of work.

Juro finished wrapping the girl's leg, and turned to find Azula standing in the doorway. She had her arms wrapped around herself, afraid to touch anything. He made his way gingerly toward her, stepping over a few cots in the process.

"I didn't think you would wake up so soon," he said, stopping a good few feet away from her. Something about his words clicked in Azula's mind, and she stared at him in shock.

"You…drugged…" Her face transformed into pure anger. She leapt over a cot, and shoved the old man to the ground. There was a collective gasp at this, but Azula didn't care, she was blinded. She raised her fist to his neck, and leaned over him, making sure he was aware of what she could do. No one seemed to move.

Juro smiled feebly. "You don't want to hurt me," he said. Azula lowered her fist in confusion. She looked around, and saw that a few people had gotten up and were trying to sneak up on her while she was bent over. She screamed at them, swinging her arm at each person in turn. They were all injured. These few did eventually back away, but by that time Juro had gotten up and dusted himself off. Azula turned to him once again, this time with less anger.

"What are talking about old man?" she snapped. He seemed to calm himself with these words, knowing she would not immediately kill him.

"I'm talking about your bending," he said slowly. "I told you I would help you, right? Well that's exactly what I'm going to do, if you let me." Azula shook her head in confusion, grasping it with both hands. He wasn't making sense. How could he help her with that? She was beyond help.

"How can you help me?" she asked. "What crackpot scheme can you have for me? I am no local with a broken leg, no despot with a seemingly fatal sickness! How can you possibly help me?!" Her voice rose, but Juro just walked up to her, and began steering her back towards the room she had left. She resisted at first, but saw no point in putting on a show for these street beggars. She let herself be led.

Once inside the room, Juro turned, and shut the door carefully.

"First of all, sit down," he said. Azula looked at the cot, then at the ground. She sat on the cot. Juro smiled, and sat next to the flat mattress on the hard dirt floor. Azula glared at him, and wrapped her arms around her knees.

"Why are you helping me? I don't have any money, nothing I can give you," she said.

"Oh, most of my patients are under those same circumstances," Juro replied, leaning back leisurely. "They all find some way or another to repay me." Azula glared even harder, if possible, and slid herself away from him. He laughed.

"Your choosing girl, pay however you like. Although when I need a favor, that's usually the time debts are paid." Azula closed her eyes and frowned in concentration. Decisions were never this hard before, but now she always felt like lashing out, like hurting someone. She opened her eyes and saw Ursa sitting in Juro's place. She blinked and then it was Zuko, blinked again and everything was normal.

"I bet you're wondering how I can help you with the bending thing," Juro finally said, as Azula wrestled with herself. "Let me show you." He got up, and made his way to a table pushed against the far wall. When he came back, he was holding a cloth bag. When he opened up the burlap, Azula could see piles of dried leaves. They smelled like incense, a rich, heady scent. Azula looked up at Juro.

"It's tea," he said. Azula started to laugh, throwing her head back.

"I can't escape!" she crowed. "Family follows me everywhere!" Juro closed the bag off with a string, and tied it to his side, sighing as Azula calmed down.

"If you drink this, you'll fall into a trance, and I can perform a ritual that will help restore lost connections," he said. "This process and the tea have been passed down in my family for generations. With it, people can experience hallucinations, even talk to the dead." Azula's mind flickered to her mother.

"Has it been tested? The ritual and all? It works?" she asked, trying to ignore her thoughts. "I wouldn't want to join those hallucinations as one of the dead, now would I?"

"As a matter of fact, it has," Juro said. "Some young boys, one with a bow and arrow and one with very poufy hair actually brought in a body. I remember it from the severe damage to the body of the boy they brought. It looked as though he had been crushed by a rock."

At that moment, there was a scream outside the door. Juro stood up quickly and ran towards it. Azula followed, but at a leisurely pace.

Right after opening the door, Juro gasped and slammed it shut. There was a pounding on the other side, and the thin wood groaned and buckled under the strain. Finally it broke, throwing Juro to the side.

Fire Nation soldiers stood in the carnage. Behind them Azula could see patients cowering on their cots. Those who could walk turned and fled. Azula stood up and held her ground, staring down the soldiers whose faces were hidden behind metal face guards. She saw Juro get up quietly, and start edging towards the sole window in the room.

"It's her, get the Avatar!" one soldier said. Another ran out the door in a hurry.

"So you think you can't incapacitate me on your own? I'm touched!" Azula laughed. She tensed, ready for a fight as the soldiers adapted their own fighting stances.

Azula lunged forward before any of them could strike. She ducked under the first out of three soldiers, and flipped him over her head, back kicking another. The first staggered to his feet, but the second, stayed down, clutching his stomach. The last was a girl, and Azula faced off against her, though she had to hold her shoulder to keep from crying out. The flip had reopened the wound in her arm. The woman didn't attack, but Azula felt a shove from behind, pushing her to the ground.

Azula turned to see her attacker, but all she got was a burst of flame shooting right over her head. Whoever had pushed her had just saved her life. Azula thought she saw Juro running back towards the window which was now half-cracked, but she couldn't think about that now. The guards that had just attacked her were advancing again. Azula, being closer to the male guard, swept his legs out from under him and watched as his head smacked against the wall. Azula leapt to her feet, feeling a little better, but the fight wasn't over yet.

The remaining female soldier swept a ring of flame toward Azula with her foot in a sweeping kick. Azula jumped, leaping toward her, using the back wall as a springboard. She laughed as she did so, feeling the thrill of the fight. The soldier even looked frightened as Azula knocked her head against the ground, carefully using her right arm.

Azula felt a hand on her shoulder and whirled around, hand against the man's neck before he could even react. But there was a bushy beard in the way. Azula let her hand fall.

"Juro," She said, smiling with a feverish glint in her eyes. "Don't interfere where you're not needed." The man glared at her and yanked on her arm, pulling her toward the window which she now saw was completely shattered. He must have finished that in the fight. Outside there was a commotion. Azula heard people running, shouting. More soldiers on their way, or even the Avatar.

"That may be true," Juro replied. "But right now we both need to get out of here."

"Wait, both?" Azula asked, but he was already out the window.


End file.
